During his rise to and occupancy of the French presidency, Nicolas Sarkozy has regularly announced new law-and-order offensives in the hopes of stoking support among the majority of French voters who say they're scared of crime. Typically, those policies have taken aim at Sarkozy's preferred target: the banlieues, the troubled suburban housing projects that ring most French cities and are populated by a disproportionately high number of minorities. Though divisive, the policies have usually worked — first fueling Sarkozy's rise from crusading Interior Minister to master of the Elysée, then serving as his trump card whenever his support slumped. But this week, Sarkozy turned on a community that has long been the default object of suspicion and disdain throughout Europe: itinerant people including gypsies, travelers and Roma. And by using that small, ostracized group as easy prey in a new anticrime push, Sarkozy has critics charging him with manipulating public concerns of security and immigration for cynical political gain.
On Wednesday, Sarkozy told members of his conservative government that he intends to look into "the problems created by the behavior of certain travelers and Roma," whose nomadic lifestyle leaves them with "no assimilation into [the] communities" they live near. He also said he'd gather with advisers on July 28 for a special Elysée meeting on the issue, which he said falls under the "implacable struggle the government is leading against crime, [and the] veritable war we're going to wage against traffickers and delinquents." Though the vast majority of the (very roughly) estimated 400,000 travelers in France are either French citizens or residents of E.U. countries, critics accuse government officials who have made statements linking the issue to immigration of trying to drum up nationalist support by playing the antiforeigner card. "You can very well be Roma, a traveler, even, at times, French within these communities," government spokesman Luc Chatel said to the press on Wednesday as he explained Sarkozy's motives. "But you'll have to respect the law of the republic."
Those comments came after a weekend of violence in central France, when young men from a community of travelers, enraged at the July 16 shooting of one of their peers by a policeman, rioted through the sleepy village of Saint-Aignan, south of Blois. For two days after 22-year-old Luigi Duquenet was fatally shot while a car he was in charged a police roadblock and allegedly hit an officer, around 50 youths from Duquenet's encampment attacked the Saint-Aignan gendarme station with metal bars and axes and also destroyed small local businesses, burned cars and damaged public property. The situation had calmed by July 18, but many people in France interpreted the violence as evidence that the widely held stereotypes of gypsies as criminals, troublemakers and outcasts are true. That such prejudice endures is partly the fault of France's authorities. Despite laws requiring that towns whose populations exceed 5,000 provide suitable camping grounds for traveler communities, France was recently chided by the Council of Europe for largely ignoring that obligation. Nomadic communities are often relegated to staying outside town walls, usually either in makeshift camps with few facilities supplied to them, or — for the poorest — in shantytowns and squats. That segregation means few urban French know much about travelers or the diversity of the traveling community. The generic label gens du voyage (travelers) covers not only tsigane (roughly "gypsies"), who went to France over the centuries, but also manouches who arrived from Germany in the 19th century, Spanish-origin gitanes and the more recent Roma.
Critics claim that Sarkozy's new hard-line focus seeks to play last week's unrest at Saint-Aignan for political gain. With his approval rating at a personal all-time low of 25%, his government dogged by spending scandals and his Labor Minister, Eric Woerth, ensnared in the intrigue surrounding the inheritance battle between L'Oréal heiresses Liliane and Françoise Bettencourt, detractors say Sarkozy's latest law-and-order charge is simply an attempt to change the topic and score points at the expense of a population that few people are eager to defend. "To better make people forget the scandal he's marred in himself, [Sarkozy] has invented a new diversion with a new category of scapegoat," Green Party legislator Noël Mamère declared on Wednesday night. "He serves up to the good folk of France people who've always been rejected to the margins of society, [and he] plays on confusion by suggesting that all Roma, all travelers, are all foreigners." Opposition pols aren't the only ones crying foul. France's League of Human Rights has decried Sarkozy's "racist stigmatization of Roma and traveler populations through unacceptable amalgams." Samir Mile, spokesman of Voice of Roma, an association defending the rights of France's nomadic communities, told France Info radio on Thursday, "We're preparing to take it right in the face as we always do during political crises," adding that when "France is going poorly, [and] the President is doing badly, he seeks to divert public opinion toward easy targets." This time, the controversy that Sarkozy's new law-and-order pledge has created seems to have replaced the applause that his previous anticrime crusades have provoked. It could be that by targeting travelers — the eternal scapegoat — Sarkozy may find that his unbeatable trump card has finally lost its magic.
Time
Monday, 26 July 2010
Sunday, 25 July 2010
27 JEWISH GRAVES VANDALIZED IN EASTERN FRANCE
Police say vandals have smashed or overturned 27 gravestones at a Jewish cemetery in eastern France. The gendarme service of the Bas-Rhin region says the damage was discovered at the cemetery in Wolfisheim on Wednesday. No other details were immediately available. Jewish grave sites around France are attacked sporadically by vandals, who leave gravestones broken or sprayed with anti-Semitic slogans. France is home to western Europe’s largest Jewish and Muslim populations, and there are occasional attacks on their schools, cemeteries or places of worship. In January a Jewish cemetery in Strasbourg was desecrated by neo-Nazis. Knesset Member Shlomo Molla (Kadima), who was in the French city to attend a ceremony marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day, told Ynet, "It was a horrible sight, which probably stemmed from the rising anti-Semitism is Europe." "There were dozens of shattered tombstones, swastikas sprayed everywhere – complete destruction. This is a heinous crime," he added. "And today of all days, when dozens of European dignitaries are attending the ceremony… this is a reminder that anti-Semitism is alive. World nations must pass laws against such anti-Semitic expressions," he said.
Associated Press
Associated Press
OUTRAGE AS SARKOZY SAYS NOMADIC GROUPS POSE 'PROBLEMS' (France)
"Easy targets"
Sarkozy’s tough talk comes amid his administration’s renewed focus on security issues, a major theme of his presidential campaign three years ago. The new “war” on urban violence, as Sarkozy has termed it, is a response not only to the travellers’ riots, but also to violence that occurred in Grenoble after police there killed a man on the run after allegedly holding up a casino. The French president’s latest statement has provoked swift condemnations by rights groups. The French Human Rights League released a statement saying: “The President of the Republic has stigmatised Roma and ‘travelling people’ in a racist way, by creating an unacceptable amalgamation of a few individuals with entire communities, and announcing plans for ethnically targeted evictions of illegal settlements”. The group added that these communities were “scapegoats for deficiencies of the state”. According to the Human Rights League, those deficiencies include the failure to allocate sufficient numbers of living areas designated specifically for “travelling people” in France, in accordance with a law adopted more than ten years ago.
400,000 to half a million travelling people in France
A group of associations for the protection of the rights of Roma and of "travelling people" published a statement accusing the government of using the recent riots as a “pretext” to impose tightened “policies of repression to demonise the primary victims of racism in France," namely the people who choose a nomadic lifestyle. One association, La Voix des Roms (“The Voice of the Roma”), accused Sarkozy -- who has recently seen already low poll numbers tumble further -- of “trying to rally public opinion with easy targets”. The charge has been rejected by Sarkozy’s cabinet. Luc Chatel, the education minister and government spokesperson, said that Sarkozy was not “trying to stigmatise a community, but to respond to a problematic situation”. The National Federation of Associations In Support of Travelling People estimates that there are approximately 400,000 to 500,000 “travelling people” and 15,000 to 20,000 Roma in France today. It is not the first time that Sarkozy faces criticism for using language deemed insensitive when referring to populations in France that are comprised in part by ethnic minorities. The most famous instance of this was in 2005, when Sarkozy, then interior minister, vowed to clean up an immigrant-heavy Parisian suburb with a “Kärcher", citing a brand of high-pressure hoses. The French president has also on several occasions used the slang word “racaille”, which translates roughly into “scum” or “thug”, to describe French youths, often of immigrant backgrounds, who are frequently involved in the unrest in French suburbs.
France 24
Sand-cleaning machine kills migrant on Athens beach (Greece)
A 30-year old Romanian migrant sleeping on the beach near Athens was killed and her husband was in critical condition after a sand-cleaning machine ran over them Friday, Greek police said.
"The driver thought there were just clothes abandoned on the beach," said a police official. "He drove over them."
The driver was arrested for homicide by accident, the official said.
The Romanian couple had been sleeping on the beach at the Paleo Faliro coastal suburb for a month, police said.
Many migrants use Greece as their springboard to the rest of Europe. It has become common for those who cannot find housing to sleep on the beach in the summer, the police official said.
Reuters
"The driver thought there were just clothes abandoned on the beach," said a police official. "He drove over them."
The driver was arrested for homicide by accident, the official said.
The Romanian couple had been sleeping on the beach at the Paleo Faliro coastal suburb for a month, police said.
Many migrants use Greece as their springboard to the rest of Europe. It has become common for those who cannot find housing to sleep on the beach in the summer, the police official said.
Reuters
Saturday, 24 July 2010
Reported abuse against Muslims in Leicestershire rises (UK)
Muslims in Leicestershire are facing increasing abuse, according to figures from the police.
Between April 2008 and March 2009, officers recorded 25 offences against Muslims but in the following 12 months, the figure rose to 42.
Most incidents involved verbal abuse but there was a small number of cases in which veils were pulled off.
Police said they treated all types of hate crime as a priority and urged victims to report any problems.
'More confidence'
Insp Bill Knopp said that while the number of offences was relatively low, they took the upward trend seriously.
"We have a very good track record in detecting racial and religiously motivated crimes.
"I would encourage anyone with information to come forward and there is a good chance we will find the offenders and bring them to book."
Rehana Sidat, from Leicester, who wears the niqab, said: "I think there are two things going on. There is more Islamophobia, people are becoming more intolerant.
"But also more people are reporting this sort of thing, having more confidence to bring it to the police."
BBC News
Between April 2008 and March 2009, officers recorded 25 offences against Muslims but in the following 12 months, the figure rose to 42.
Most incidents involved verbal abuse but there was a small number of cases in which veils were pulled off.
Police said they treated all types of hate crime as a priority and urged victims to report any problems.
'More confidence'
Insp Bill Knopp said that while the number of offences was relatively low, they took the upward trend seriously.
"We have a very good track record in detecting racial and religiously motivated crimes.
"I would encourage anyone with information to come forward and there is a good chance we will find the offenders and bring them to book."
Rehana Sidat, from Leicester, who wears the niqab, said: "I think there are two things going on. There is more Islamophobia, people are becoming more intolerant.
"But also more people are reporting this sort of thing, having more confidence to bring it to the police."
BBC News
Mel Gibson accused of wanting 'Jew blood on my hands,' claims ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva
Oh Mel, when does it end?Mel Gibson, whose alleged rants against baby mama Oksana Grigorieva have been leaked on several recordings, has been accused of spewing some anti-Semitic comments – and this time it's threatening.
According to RadarOnline.com, Gibson's baby mama Oksana Grigorieva told authorities who are investigating the actor for domestic abuse that he once said, "I want Jew blood on my hands."
The foul-mouthed actor's alleged slur was reportedly made in reference to a high-profile Jewish figure in Hollywood whom he believed had "publicly humiliated" him.
Grigorieva, 40, claimed the hot-tempered actor "wanted the person taken to the desert, stripped naked, knee capped and left in the heat," according to Radar.
Gibson, 54, is also accused of hiring someone to surveil this person. The reported threats were never carried out.
This is the latest explosive claim against the "Mad Max" actor, who is heard making racist slurs against African Americans and Latinos in previous tapes.
In 2006, Gibson famously launched into an anti-Semitic tirade during his DUI arrest in Malibu.
"F--- Jews. The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world. Are you a Jew?" the actor said to his arresting officer, who is Jewish.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and the California Department of Children and Family Services are both investigating the actor after Grigorieva claimed he hit her during a heated fight in January.
According to Radar, Gibson also supposedly choked and punched the Russian beauty twice in the head, all while she was clutching their baby girl, Lucia. Pictures of Grigorieva with broken front teeth – allegedly a result of Gibson's punch – have also surfaced.
NY Daily
NOW SPAIN FLOATS A BURQA BAN
Spain’s parliament has joined an ever-lengthening list of European legislatures considering banning the burqa and niqab. No decision on whether to outlaw the veil in Spain will be made until later this year, but the fact that the congressional debate came just one week after France’s lower house overwhelmingly approved a ban is worrying many Muslims in Europe and beyond. There have been demonstrations as far away as Pakistan over the French decision, even though only around 2,000 of France’s five million Muslims – most of them French converts to Islam – cover their faces. Even though the Spanish justice minister, Francisco Caamano, said last week that garments like the burqa were “hardly compatible with human dignity”, the ruling Socialist Party was expected yesterday to vote against a plan to bar women from wearing a veil in public. The proposal was put forward by the opposition Popular Party, but analysts saw it as a political ploy to win support. No one has actually been able to cite a public place where women typically wear such veils in Spain.
Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, described the moves in Europe as thinly disguised attempts to discriminate against Muslims. “It’s really a new type of law targeting a particular minority faith based on the prejudices of the majority. And my religious rights should not be dependent on a majority vote,” he told Voice of America radio. Apart from France and Spain, the lower house of Belgium’s parliament has passed a bill to ban clothing that hides a person’s identity in any public place. Dutch attempts to impose a similar ban were dropped in 2006 over fears it would be unconstitutional. The government said it would legislate instead to ban burqas in schools and state buildings. Austria and Switzerland have both vowed to consider bans if burqas were to become widespread. Denmark and several German states have imposed bans on headscarves for various professions. And in northern Italy, local authorities have passed by-laws or resurrected old public order laws against the wearing of masks.
The UK, however, is bucking the trend, firmly ruling out any ban, even though a recent opinion poll showed that 67 per cent of Britons favoured one. A Conservative backbench MP introduced a private bill in parliament last week that calls for face coverings to be outlawed in public places. But his bill stands no chance of becoming law as all three major parties oppose the move. Damian Green, the immigration minister, described any such ban as “un-British”, while Caroline Spelman, the environment secretary, said wearing the burqa could be “empowering” for some women. Welcoming these declarations yesterday, Mohammed Shafiq, chief executive of the Ramadhan Foundation, a London-based organisation dedicated to inter-faith dialogue, said: “The right of Muslim women to wear the veil should be protected by this government and I welcome their commitment to freedom.”
The move towards bans could see a series of legal challenges in the European Court of Human Rights. John Dalhuisen of Amnesty International, an expert on discrimination in Europe, said he was concerned that the tendency towards bans could lead to restrictions on women’s rights. “Some of those who are currently being forced to wear veils won’t necessarily see their situation improve,” he said. “They will see access to services, goods and perhaps even the assistance that they might want to reach out to, taken away from them. “There’s obviously a risk of a double punishment – they are punished in the home and then they go out in the street and they are punished again.”
The National
Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, described the moves in Europe as thinly disguised attempts to discriminate against Muslims. “It’s really a new type of law targeting a particular minority faith based on the prejudices of the majority. And my religious rights should not be dependent on a majority vote,” he told Voice of America radio. Apart from France and Spain, the lower house of Belgium’s parliament has passed a bill to ban clothing that hides a person’s identity in any public place. Dutch attempts to impose a similar ban were dropped in 2006 over fears it would be unconstitutional. The government said it would legislate instead to ban burqas in schools and state buildings. Austria and Switzerland have both vowed to consider bans if burqas were to become widespread. Denmark and several German states have imposed bans on headscarves for various professions. And in northern Italy, local authorities have passed by-laws or resurrected old public order laws against the wearing of masks.
The UK, however, is bucking the trend, firmly ruling out any ban, even though a recent opinion poll showed that 67 per cent of Britons favoured one. A Conservative backbench MP introduced a private bill in parliament last week that calls for face coverings to be outlawed in public places. But his bill stands no chance of becoming law as all three major parties oppose the move. Damian Green, the immigration minister, described any such ban as “un-British”, while Caroline Spelman, the environment secretary, said wearing the burqa could be “empowering” for some women. Welcoming these declarations yesterday, Mohammed Shafiq, chief executive of the Ramadhan Foundation, a London-based organisation dedicated to inter-faith dialogue, said: “The right of Muslim women to wear the veil should be protected by this government and I welcome their commitment to freedom.”
The move towards bans could see a series of legal challenges in the European Court of Human Rights. John Dalhuisen of Amnesty International, an expert on discrimination in Europe, said he was concerned that the tendency towards bans could lead to restrictions on women’s rights. “Some of those who are currently being forced to wear veils won’t necessarily see their situation improve,” he said. “They will see access to services, goods and perhaps even the assistance that they might want to reach out to, taken away from them. “There’s obviously a risk of a double punishment – they are punished in the home and then they go out in the street and they are punished again.”
The National
NATIONAL RACISM REPORT UNDER FIRE (Denmark)
A leading anti-racism organisation has criticised the government’s latest progress report to the UN, saying that it is both incomplete and that the number of cases included in the document is too low. The report was sent as a precursor to the UN’s Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which will assess the situation in Denmark in August. But according to the Documentation and Advisory Centre on Racism, the report leaves out a slew of incidents that the police and other investigators have deemed possibly race-related. ‘For example, the report doesn’t mention that [national intelligence agency] PET has identified 560 cases with possible racial/religious overtones, including violence, harassment, vandalism and attempted murder,’ said Niels-Erik Hansen, head of the advisory centre. He also pointed out that the government’s assessment indicated that over the past five years there have been 123 reports of violations adhering to anti-racism laws. But according to the National Police, the figure is 190 cases in all. Hansen said the government report painted a far too ‘rosy’ picture of the situation in Denmark. ‘If you cover your ears and close your eyes then it's easy to pretend there’s no racism,’ said Hansen. Frank Mathiesen, a Justice Ministry advisor, said that if the UN asked for specific information about possible racially or religiously motivated incidents, then the government would not hesitate in providing it. Both the Social Liberals and the Red Green Alliance have also criticised the report as inadequate.
The Copenhagen Post
The Copenhagen Post
Neo-nazi Movement Only 100 Signatures Away from Becoming Political Party
“We are planning to go downtown, to Paseo Ahumada, so we’ve made a request to the municipality,” PNS leader told online magazine Acción Chilena.
Alexis López, president of PNS said they already have about 40 of the 100 signatures they lack. Apart from these, the group already has seven thousand members.
The 2006 appeal to the Constitutional Court to outlaw this group was unsuccessful, according to a a ruling issued last month. In that appeal parliamentarians, the Homosexual Liberation Movement (Movilh) as well as the Jewish Youth group accused this movement of various neo-nazi attacks from 2002 to 2006.
But the group hopes to be a regional party before going national. They hope to focus in Arica, Iquique, Antofagasta, Araucanía, Valdivia, Osorno and Aysén. The minimum number of signatures required by region is at least 0.5 percent of the electorate who cast ballots in the last deputy election. In Santiago, for example, that would total about 12 thousand signatures.
If they do become a party, it would most probably be marginalized since National Socialist groups around the world are usually cut from the electoral map. But with regards to criticism López does not worry much and calls them prejudice. “To have people who oppose… is part of the democratic game,” he said. He also distances himself from other Nazi groups who are known for violent attacks. “We don’t want to be related to them. They have even attacked us for being traitors.”
The Pulse
Friday, 23 July 2010
Muslim woman wearing veil 'refused bus ride' in London
Two Muslim women have claimed they were refused a bus ride because one had her face covered by a veil.
The students, both 22 and from Slough, Berkshire, boarded a Metroline bus from Russell Square to Paddington, London.
But they said when they presented their tickets on Tuesday, the driver told them they were a "threat" to passengers and ordered them off the bus.
The firm has started an "urgent" investigation. The Muslim Council of Britain said it was "deeply concerned".
The pair, who have made a formal complaint to the bus company, have asked the BBC not to reveal their full names.
Yasmin was wearing a hijab and Atoofa was dressed in a niqab - which covers the face.
Yasmin said at first she boarded the bus by mistake when it was not in service to ask where it was going, but was told by the driver to get off.
"About 10 minutes later... the passengers started getting on. When I went forward to show my ticket he said, 'Get off the bus'. I presumed he was still angry because I got on the bus before.
"He said, 'I am not going to take you on the bus because you two are a threat.'
"I realised it wasn't due to me getting on the bus, this may be a racist attack."
She asked for his contact details but when he refused she began to film him and he covered his face.
"I said, 'It's OK for you to cover your face on my recording but it's not OK for my friend to cover her face out of choice?'
"There was no point arguing with him, we got off the bus and by then my anger turned into emotion."
BBC News
The students, both 22 and from Slough, Berkshire, boarded a Metroline bus from Russell Square to Paddington, London.
But they said when they presented their tickets on Tuesday, the driver told them they were a "threat" to passengers and ordered them off the bus.
The firm has started an "urgent" investigation. The Muslim Council of Britain said it was "deeply concerned".
The pair, who have made a formal complaint to the bus company, have asked the BBC not to reveal their full names.
Yasmin was wearing a hijab and Atoofa was dressed in a niqab - which covers the face.
Yasmin said at first she boarded the bus by mistake when it was not in service to ask where it was going, but was told by the driver to get off.
"About 10 minutes later... the passengers started getting on. When I went forward to show my ticket he said, 'Get off the bus'. I presumed he was still angry because I got on the bus before.
"He said, 'I am not going to take you on the bus because you two are a threat.'
"I realised it wasn't due to me getting on the bus, this may be a racist attack."
She asked for his contact details but when he refused she began to film him and he covered his face.
"I said, 'It's OK for you to cover your face on my recording but it's not OK for my friend to cover her face out of choice?'
"There was no point arguing with him, we got off the bus and by then my anger turned into emotion."
BBC News
Russian neo-Nazi murder trial opens
A gang of 13 suspected neo-Nazis have gone on trial for mass murder in Russia.
The group, accused of killing 27 people, also face other charges including attempted terrorism and inciting ethnic hatred.
Authorities allege the defendants are members of the National-Socialist Society, established in 2004 with the aim of turning Russia into a Nazi state.
Operating mainly in the Moscow region, police say the skinheads targeted foreign nationals and ethnic minorities, with reports one anti-Nazi activist was stabbed 30 times by members of the gang as part of an initiation test.
Russia has seen a wave of racially motivated crimes since the collapse of the former Soviet Union. The ultra nationalist faction, banned two years ago, regularly organised combat training for members and published its own newspaper in a bid to spread its extreme ideology.
EuroNews
The group, accused of killing 27 people, also face other charges including attempted terrorism and inciting ethnic hatred.
Authorities allege the defendants are members of the National-Socialist Society, established in 2004 with the aim of turning Russia into a Nazi state.
Operating mainly in the Moscow region, police say the skinheads targeted foreign nationals and ethnic minorities, with reports one anti-Nazi activist was stabbed 30 times by members of the gang as part of an initiation test.
Russia has seen a wave of racially motivated crimes since the collapse of the former Soviet Union. The ultra nationalist faction, banned two years ago, regularly organised combat training for members and published its own newspaper in a bid to spread its extreme ideology.
EuroNews
Rage Against The Machine To Rock Against 'Racist' Arizona Immigration Bill
Los Angeles show will be the band's only concert in North America this year.So the band decided to do what it does best: bring the sound and fury.
In tandem with Sound Strike — an organization that calls on musicians to boycott the state until SB 1070 is repealed — Rage organized a benefit show set for Friday in the band's hometown of Los Angeles. Considering the heft of the situation (and the fact that the gig will be RATM's first L.A. appearance in 10 years), well, you can expect that it's going to be a pretty monumental evening.
"Sound Strike is artists united against Arizona's recently passed, racist immigration legislation," Morello told MTV News on Wednesday. "[And] Rage Against the Machine are playing our first show in 10 years in our hometown of Los Angeles to support activists within the state of Arizona who are against this legislation. We're playing with Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, and it's going to be a pretty fantastic time."
Morello said that all proceeds from the show, which is already sold out, will go to the Sound Strike Fund, which directly supports the Arizona-based organizations PUENTE Arizona and The Florence Project. And he promised that fans will be in for a fiery night. After all, the stakes are high, and the band's anger is even higher.
"Rage is playing just one show in North America this year, and the reason we're doing it is to stand up against legislation that just reminds me of the worst aspects of apartheid," Morello said. "It's a soft-core apartheid, so we're going to rock until that f---ing thing's kicked out."
MTV UK
BNP boss Nick Griffin to open office in Burnley (UK)
BNP leader Nick Griffin has set up a base in Burnley.
The highly-controversial politician officially opened his "Euro office" on Saturday in Yorke Street where he will spend time in his role as a Member of the European Parliament for the North-West.
Mr Griffin believes Burnley holds a "special place" in the party's history and it is thought he will hold surgeries at the address in the coming months.
Burnley MP Gordon Birtwistle said democracy meant Mr Griffin was entitled to set up stall in the town. "The office has been there for a number of years and it has done nothing in the past. I would suggest it won't be doing much in future either.
"Nick Griffin is one of our MEPs and a pretty insignificant one at the moment ashe doesn't seem to be doing a lot. However, if he wants to come and sort the problems any Burnley people are having with the European Parliament then so be it. I hope he does hold surgeries there and helps deliver what the people of Burnley want," he said.
"The office is important as it will bring local people closer to their MEP," said Mr Griffin, who was dramatically refused entry to the Queen's Garden Party at Buckingham Palace yesterday where Mayor of Burnley Coun. Tony Lambert and his wife, Brenda, were guests.
"Burnley has a special place in the history of the British National Party as it was here we made our political breakthrough when winning three seats on Burnley Council in 2002."
Mr Griffin was elected to Brussels last year even though the BNP polled fewer votes in the region than it had in 2004 – winning a seat through the system of proportional representation used in the European elections. He promised then he would be opening an office in Burnley in the near future.
The BNP has used an office within the Yorke Street building since 2002 but recently moved to two new offices within the same complex.
Leader of the Burnley BNP party Coun. Sharon Wilkinson said: "When Nick first got elected as MEP he said he was going to set up an office in Burnley and he's kept his word. It will be funded with Nick's European funding. We will be getting some of the Euro staff here as well which means we will be able to help more local people with their problems."
Burnley Express
The highly-controversial politician officially opened his "Euro office" on Saturday in Yorke Street where he will spend time in his role as a Member of the European Parliament for the North-West.
Mr Griffin believes Burnley holds a "special place" in the party's history and it is thought he will hold surgeries at the address in the coming months.
Burnley MP Gordon Birtwistle said democracy meant Mr Griffin was entitled to set up stall in the town. "The office has been there for a number of years and it has done nothing in the past. I would suggest it won't be doing much in future either.
"Nick Griffin is one of our MEPs and a pretty insignificant one at the moment ashe doesn't seem to be doing a lot. However, if he wants to come and sort the problems any Burnley people are having with the European Parliament then so be it. I hope he does hold surgeries there and helps deliver what the people of Burnley want," he said.
"The office is important as it will bring local people closer to their MEP," said Mr Griffin, who was dramatically refused entry to the Queen's Garden Party at Buckingham Palace yesterday where Mayor of Burnley Coun. Tony Lambert and his wife, Brenda, were guests.
"Burnley has a special place in the history of the British National Party as it was here we made our political breakthrough when winning three seats on Burnley Council in 2002."
Mr Griffin was elected to Brussels last year even though the BNP polled fewer votes in the region than it had in 2004 – winning a seat through the system of proportional representation used in the European elections. He promised then he would be opening an office in Burnley in the near future.
The BNP has used an office within the Yorke Street building since 2002 but recently moved to two new offices within the same complex.
Leader of the Burnley BNP party Coun. Sharon Wilkinson said: "When Nick first got elected as MEP he said he was going to set up an office in Burnley and he's kept his word. It will be funded with Nick's European funding. We will be getting some of the Euro staff here as well which means we will be able to help more local people with their problems."
Burnley Express
Peter Tatchell confronts BNP's Nick Griffin (UK)
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell has confronted BNP leader Nick Griffin, calling him a "gutless coward".
Mr. Griffin was emerging from BBC studios at Westminster when Mr. Tatchell approached him and asked him to apologise for what he called the BNP's long history of anti-semitism, homophobia and anti-islamic views.
Two of Mr. Griffin's entourage then grabbed and pushed Mr. Tatchell as the BNP leader left the building.
BBC News
Mr. Griffin was emerging from BBC studios at Westminster when Mr. Tatchell approached him and asked him to apologise for what he called the BNP's long history of anti-semitism, homophobia and anti-islamic views.
Two of Mr. Griffin's entourage then grabbed and pushed Mr. Tatchell as the BNP leader left the building.
BBC News
Right-wing group clashes with Muslims in Luton
Trouble flared after Kevin Carroll, 41, lost at appeal at Luton Crown Court to overturn a conviction for using threatening behaviour at an earlier demonstration.
Up to 80 officers had to keep a group of Carroll's supporters, chanting 'EDL', separate from opposition protesters.
During the violence objects including ashtrays and a knife were thrown.
Carroll had objected to Muslim demonstrators who had shouted abuse at British soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Anglian Regiment, during a homecoming parade in the town in March last year.
They had shouted "British soldiers go to hell" and called them "butchers of Basra".
Carroll verbally retaliated, swearing at the protesters and singing "bin Laden's mother is a whore".
He was charged and subsequently convicted of using threatening words and behaviour likely to to cause fear harassment and alarm. He was given a conditional discharge.
Following his failed appeal, he told a crowd of supporters that people like him were being "treated like enemies of the state".
He said: "Thank you patriots and people of our great democracy for supporting me.
"God Bless our Troops, God save the Queen."
Telegraph
Up to 80 officers had to keep a group of Carroll's supporters, chanting 'EDL', separate from opposition protesters.
During the violence objects including ashtrays and a knife were thrown.
Carroll had objected to Muslim demonstrators who had shouted abuse at British soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Anglian Regiment, during a homecoming parade in the town in March last year.
They had shouted "British soldiers go to hell" and called them "butchers of Basra".
Carroll verbally retaliated, swearing at the protesters and singing "bin Laden's mother is a whore".
He was charged and subsequently convicted of using threatening words and behaviour likely to to cause fear harassment and alarm. He was given a conditional discharge.
Following his failed appeal, he told a crowd of supporters that people like him were being "treated like enemies of the state".
He said: "Thank you patriots and people of our great democracy for supporting me.
"God Bless our Troops, God save the Queen."
Telegraph
Nick Griffin denounces decision to ban him from garden party
Nick Griffin, the leader of the British National Party, was barred from attending a garden party at Buckingham Palace yesterday after being accused of using the event for "overtly" political purposes.
The far-right leader, had been invited to the event hosted by the Queen, in his capacity as a Member of the European Parliament and had been expected to attend with his wife and children.
But in an eleventh hour decision, announced just hours before guests began arriving, Palace officials said his invitation had been revoked.
It was claimed Mr Griffin, who represents North West England in the European Parliament, had been using his attendance at the event to promote the BNP after giving a television interview and posting a message on his party’s website describing the invitation as “highly symbolic”.
Palace officials said his actions had raised security concerns and could cause discomfort for other attendees.
A Palace spokesman said: “Nick Griffin MEP will be denied entry to today's Garden Party at Buckingham Palace due to the fact he has overtly used his personal invitation for Party political purposes through the media
“This in turn has increased the security threat and the potential discomfort to the many other guests also attending.
“Mr Griffin's personal invitation was issued to him as an elected Member of the European Parliament. The decision to deny him entry is not intended to show any disrespect to the democratic process by which the invitation was issued.
“However, we would apply the same rules to anyone who tried to blatantly politicise their attendance in this way.”
Mr Griffin condemned the decision as an “outrage” and "anti-British" and accused the Government of orchestrating the move.
The BNP leader said: “This is quite amazing news. At no time was I informed that I wasn't allowed to talk to the media about this. Other people have talked about attending. Why a double standard here?
“To say that one person in the country cannot speak to the media is an outrage.”
He added: “The move has obviously been made under pressure from the ConDem regime who are desperate for any reason to bar the BNP. I am held to a different standard to everyone else in the country – that is thoroughly anti-British.”
But his inclusion on the 8,000 strong guest list had already caused controversy with many mainstream politicians condemning the invitation.
In the Commons Tory MP Julian Lewis said Mr Griffin should have never been invited to the Palace in the first place.
He said some people did not wish to "rub shoulders with neo-Nazis" at garden parties.
Andrew Brons, the BNP’s MEP for Yorkshire and the Humber, was allowed to attend the event after Palace officials said he had not sought to make political capital out of his invitation.
Last night the Palace’s handling of the affair was under the spotlight with some suggesting it had resulted in a publicity boost for the party.
As well as the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh, other members of the Royal Family attending included the Duke of York, The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and the Duke of Kent.
Mr Griffin, who was eligible for a ticket as an elected MEP, was invited last year as a guest of party colleague Richard Barnbrook – a member of the London Assembly – but pulled out after a public outcry.
A Unite Against Fascism spokesman said they were delighted by the Palace's decision to bar Mr Griffin.
He added: "I think this is a fantastic decision that's been taken. the invitation in the first place was a blow for those who suffered in the Holocaust and more recently those who have suffered at the hands of racists and homophobes.
"The fact he was invited anyway is a little bit concerning. The Palace needs to understand and the establishment in general, who are giving these privileges, that the whole point of him being so excited about going is because it gives him the chance to legitimise himself."
The decision was taken by a handful of the most senior members of the Royal household, including Christopher Geidt, the Queen's private secretary, who took advice from the Metropolitan Police about the possibility of Mr Griffin's attendance causing public disorder outside the Palace.
One Royal source denied the decision - which gave Mr Griffin blanket coverage on TV news channels - had backfired, saying: "He got an awful lot of publicity before we said he wouldn't be allowed in, and we've got to look at the bigger picture. He was turning it into a party political statement.
"We had a lot of information about marches and people protesting outside the railings, and also we have to think about how it's going to affect the other people at the garden party.
"We couldn't make this decision any earlier because we had to wait and see how much mileage he was getting out of it. It wasn't a decision which was against the BNP, because we had Andrew Brons inside the garden, who didn't try to use it for publicity. If Nick Griffin had done the same he might have been enjoying tea with the family.
"A lot of people at the party said they were glad he wasn't there because they wanted their visit to be about them, not Mr Griffin."
The Telegraph
The far-right leader, had been invited to the event hosted by the Queen, in his capacity as a Member of the European Parliament and had been expected to attend with his wife and children.
But in an eleventh hour decision, announced just hours before guests began arriving, Palace officials said his invitation had been revoked.
It was claimed Mr Griffin, who represents North West England in the European Parliament, had been using his attendance at the event to promote the BNP after giving a television interview and posting a message on his party’s website describing the invitation as “highly symbolic”.
Palace officials said his actions had raised security concerns and could cause discomfort for other attendees.
A Palace spokesman said: “Nick Griffin MEP will be denied entry to today's Garden Party at Buckingham Palace due to the fact he has overtly used his personal invitation for Party political purposes through the media
“This in turn has increased the security threat and the potential discomfort to the many other guests also attending.
“Mr Griffin's personal invitation was issued to him as an elected Member of the European Parliament. The decision to deny him entry is not intended to show any disrespect to the democratic process by which the invitation was issued.
“However, we would apply the same rules to anyone who tried to blatantly politicise their attendance in this way.”
Mr Griffin condemned the decision as an “outrage” and "anti-British" and accused the Government of orchestrating the move.
The BNP leader said: “This is quite amazing news. At no time was I informed that I wasn't allowed to talk to the media about this. Other people have talked about attending. Why a double standard here?
“To say that one person in the country cannot speak to the media is an outrage.”
He added: “The move has obviously been made under pressure from the ConDem regime who are desperate for any reason to bar the BNP. I am held to a different standard to everyone else in the country – that is thoroughly anti-British.”
But his inclusion on the 8,000 strong guest list had already caused controversy with many mainstream politicians condemning the invitation.
In the Commons Tory MP Julian Lewis said Mr Griffin should have never been invited to the Palace in the first place.
He said some people did not wish to "rub shoulders with neo-Nazis" at garden parties.
Andrew Brons, the BNP’s MEP for Yorkshire and the Humber, was allowed to attend the event after Palace officials said he had not sought to make political capital out of his invitation.
Last night the Palace’s handling of the affair was under the spotlight with some suggesting it had resulted in a publicity boost for the party.
As well as the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh, other members of the Royal Family attending included the Duke of York, The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and the Duke of Kent.
Mr Griffin, who was eligible for a ticket as an elected MEP, was invited last year as a guest of party colleague Richard Barnbrook – a member of the London Assembly – but pulled out after a public outcry.
A Unite Against Fascism spokesman said they were delighted by the Palace's decision to bar Mr Griffin.
He added: "I think this is a fantastic decision that's been taken. the invitation in the first place was a blow for those who suffered in the Holocaust and more recently those who have suffered at the hands of racists and homophobes.
"The fact he was invited anyway is a little bit concerning. The Palace needs to understand and the establishment in general, who are giving these privileges, that the whole point of him being so excited about going is because it gives him the chance to legitimise himself."
The decision was taken by a handful of the most senior members of the Royal household, including Christopher Geidt, the Queen's private secretary, who took advice from the Metropolitan Police about the possibility of Mr Griffin's attendance causing public disorder outside the Palace.
One Royal source denied the decision - which gave Mr Griffin blanket coverage on TV news channels - had backfired, saying: "He got an awful lot of publicity before we said he wouldn't be allowed in, and we've got to look at the bigger picture. He was turning it into a party political statement.
"We had a lot of information about marches and people protesting outside the railings, and also we have to think about how it's going to affect the other people at the garden party.
"We couldn't make this decision any earlier because we had to wait and see how much mileage he was getting out of it. It wasn't a decision which was against the BNP, because we had Andrew Brons inside the garden, who didn't try to use it for publicity. If Nick Griffin had done the same he might have been enjoying tea with the family.
"A lot of people at the party said they were glad he wasn't there because they wanted their visit to be about them, not Mr Griffin."
The Telegraph
Obama says sorry to Shirley Sherrod, wrongly accused of racism
SHIRLEY Sherrod has received the biggest "I'm sorry" of all from a contrite President Barack Obama, who personally appealed to the wrongly accused Agriculture Department worker to come back.
Ms Sherrod was forced to resign on Monday because of comments she made at a civil rights gathering.
Mr Obama has asked her to rejoin the federal government and transform "this misfortune" into a chance to use her life experiences to help people, said White House press secretary Robert Gibbs.
Mr Obama had stayed out of the public brouhaha that followed Ms Sherrod's ouster from the Agriculture Department after a conservative blogger posted a truncated clip of the black woman's comments and portrayed her as racist.
Once it became clear that the speech was advocating racial reconciliation, not racism, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack apologised to her and offered her a new job on Wednesday.
Mr Gibbs also apologised publicly "for the entire administration".
On Thursday morning, Mr Obama spoke by phone with Ms Sherrod and said he hoped she would accept Agriculture's offer of a new position, Mr Gibbs said. He added that Mr Obama thought Ms Sherrod was "very gracious".
Ms Sherrod said she had not decided whether to return, but she did accept the apologies.
In an excerpt of an ABC News interview broadcast on Thursday, Mr Obama said Mr Vilsack had been too quick to seek Ms Sherrod's dismissal.
"He jumped the gun, partly because we now live in this media culture where something goes up on YouTube or a blog and everybody scrambles," Mr Obama said.
The president said he had instructed "my team" to make sure "that we're focusing on doing the right thing instead of what looks to be politically necessary at that very moment. We have to take our time and think these issues through."
As top government officials begged for her forgiveness, Ms Sherrod did not shy away from telling her story on television. She hopped from network to network, even chatting with the ladies of ABC's The View and letting CNN film part of her call with Mr Obama as she travelled the streets of New York City in a car.
Even the president of the United States had a hard time getting to Ms Sherrod while she did interviews.
Mr Obama had tried to reach her twice Wednesday night but could not, said a White House official. She was on a plane travelling from Atlanta to New York, where she appeared on several morning shows.
Ms Sherrod was forced to resign as director of rural development in the southern state of Georgia after the clip appeared on a blog of her speech to a local meeting of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. She was talking of her initial reluctance 24 years ago to help a poor white farmer seeking government assistance. She worked for a non-government organisation at the time.
The full clip made clear that the vignette was setting the scene for her main point, that race must play no part in helping others.
The NAACP, which had at first condemned her remarks, then later apologised, posted the full 43-minute video showing the entire speech. The farmer in question also did interviews and said Ms Sherrod had helped him save his farm.
Conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart said he had posted a portion of Ms Sherrod's remarks to illustrate that racism exists in the NAACP, an argument he was using to counter allegations by the civil rights organisation of racism in a conservative movement called the tea parties.
"He was willing to destroy me ... in order to try to destroy the NAACP," Ms Sherrod said. She said she might consider suing Mr Breitbart for defamation.
Mr Vilsack, offering his remorse on Wednesday, told reporters: "This is a good woman. She's been through hell. ... I could have done and should have done a better job."
Herald Sun
Ms Sherrod was forced to resign on Monday because of comments she made at a civil rights gathering.
Mr Obama has asked her to rejoin the federal government and transform "this misfortune" into a chance to use her life experiences to help people, said White House press secretary Robert Gibbs.
Mr Obama had stayed out of the public brouhaha that followed Ms Sherrod's ouster from the Agriculture Department after a conservative blogger posted a truncated clip of the black woman's comments and portrayed her as racist.
Once it became clear that the speech was advocating racial reconciliation, not racism, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack apologised to her and offered her a new job on Wednesday.
Mr Gibbs also apologised publicly "for the entire administration".
On Thursday morning, Mr Obama spoke by phone with Ms Sherrod and said he hoped she would accept Agriculture's offer of a new position, Mr Gibbs said. He added that Mr Obama thought Ms Sherrod was "very gracious".
Ms Sherrod said she had not decided whether to return, but she did accept the apologies.
In an excerpt of an ABC News interview broadcast on Thursday, Mr Obama said Mr Vilsack had been too quick to seek Ms Sherrod's dismissal.
"He jumped the gun, partly because we now live in this media culture where something goes up on YouTube or a blog and everybody scrambles," Mr Obama said.
The president said he had instructed "my team" to make sure "that we're focusing on doing the right thing instead of what looks to be politically necessary at that very moment. We have to take our time and think these issues through."
As top government officials begged for her forgiveness, Ms Sherrod did not shy away from telling her story on television. She hopped from network to network, even chatting with the ladies of ABC's The View and letting CNN film part of her call with Mr Obama as she travelled the streets of New York City in a car.
Even the president of the United States had a hard time getting to Ms Sherrod while she did interviews.
Mr Obama had tried to reach her twice Wednesday night but could not, said a White House official. She was on a plane travelling from Atlanta to New York, where she appeared on several morning shows.
Ms Sherrod was forced to resign as director of rural development in the southern state of Georgia after the clip appeared on a blog of her speech to a local meeting of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. She was talking of her initial reluctance 24 years ago to help a poor white farmer seeking government assistance. She worked for a non-government organisation at the time.
The full clip made clear that the vignette was setting the scene for her main point, that race must play no part in helping others.
The NAACP, which had at first condemned her remarks, then later apologised, posted the full 43-minute video showing the entire speech. The farmer in question also did interviews and said Ms Sherrod had helped him save his farm.
Conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart said he had posted a portion of Ms Sherrod's remarks to illustrate that racism exists in the NAACP, an argument he was using to counter allegations by the civil rights organisation of racism in a conservative movement called the tea parties.
"He was willing to destroy me ... in order to try to destroy the NAACP," Ms Sherrod said. She said she might consider suing Mr Breitbart for defamation.
Mr Vilsack, offering his remorse on Wednesday, told reporters: "This is a good woman. She's been through hell. ... I could have done and should have done a better job."
Herald Sun
Thursday, 22 July 2010
Nick Griffin denied entry to Buckingham Palace garden party
The far right leader, who is a Member of the European Parliament, had been invited along with 8,000 other guests to the event which is being hosted by the Queen and attended by the Duke of Edinburgh.
But officials withdrew the invitation after warning his attendance could increase the security threat and cause discomfort for others attending.
A Palace spokesman said: “Nick Griffin MEP will be denied entry to today's Garden Party at Buckingham Palace due to the fact he has overtly used his personal invitation for Party political purposes through the media
“This in turn has increased the security threat and the potential discomfort to the many other guests also attending.
“Mr Griffin's personal invitation was issued to him as an elected Member of the European Parliament. The decision to deny him entry is not intended to show any disrespect to the democratic process by which the invitation was issued.
“However, we would apply the same rules to anyone who tried to blatantly politicise their attendance in this way.”
Other members of the Royal Family who were due to attend the event included the Duke of York, The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and the Duke of Kent.
Mr Griffin described the decision as "an outrage" and "thoroughly anti-British".
The BNP leader said: "This is quite amazing news. At no time was I informed that I wasn't allowed to talk to the media about this. Other people have talked about attending. Why a double standard here?
"To say that one person in the country cannot speak to the media is an outrage."
Asked if he still intended to go to the palace, Mr Griffin initially said: "I don't know."
But he then added: "I'm not about to try and gatecrash the party, that is for sure."
Mr Griffin said he did not "blame the Queen" and claimed Buckingham Palace was under "enormous pressure from the Lib Con coalition" to withdraw his invite.
He maintained he had a mandate from a million British people and had a right to attend.
The BNP leader added: "I am held to a different standard to everyone else in the country - that is thoroughly anti-British."
A Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said later that BNP MEP Andrew Brons's invitation to today's garden party had not been revoked as he had not "exploited" it for political ends.
But Mr Griffin's guests - thought to be his wife and children - could not attend as he had been barred.
The Telegraph
Thirteen alleged neo-Nazis on trial in Moscow
A group of alleged Neo-Nazis is on trial in Moscow accused of killing dozens of people in ethnically-motivated crimes. Other charges they face include attempted terrorism and inciting ethnic dissension.
During the trial the prosecutors will state the indictment, while the accused will respond with their plea.
Possible sentences should the accused be found guilty range from years in jail to a life sentence.
Investigators claim the gang was part of the National-Socialist Society and wants to turn Russia into a Nazi state.
The society was subsequently banned for being extremist.
More information
Slowly getting better
Veronica Koroleva is a self-professed, deeply religious woman who is full of hate for those who are different. She despises immigrants and accuses them of occupying, disrespecting and contaminating her nation.
Russians she insists are fighting a race war motivated by love.
“Love for our homeland and our nation, love for our god. Pure families where people don't just date and then break up; but, rather, they get married in church; they don't practice abortions; they don't support inter-ethnic marriages,” Koroleva said.
“I believe everyone should live in their own homeland where they belong,” she reacted when seeing RT’s Staci Bivens.
Armed with this belief and inspired by racist bloggings, her husband Nikolay Korolev and two fellow students bombed Moscow’s Cherkizovsky market in 2006. They targeted it because of the number of traders that come from Central Asia and China. The blast killed 14.
Veronica’s husband is serving a life sentence for actions neither of them regrets and for a cause they both support.
Attacks against non-Slavic looking people are often brutal and, in cases like in Cherkizovsky market, they are deadly.
The deeds of angry mobs pummeling outnumbered victims are recorded by racists and then posted on nationalist websites.
Activists call the situation out of control, but Galina Kozhevnikova from SOVA Center for Information Analysis – a local, non-profit crime watchdog – does acknowledge it is slowly getting better.
“They started seizing the most odious groups that had been involved in systematic violence and terrorism. During the last two years, the largest formations in Moscow were dispelled, and the key activists and murderers were detained,” Kozhevnikova said.
She says 19 people have been killed due to hate crimes in 2010, which is down from 50 for the same time period last year.
However, that math does little to satisfy migrants, who feel self reliance is better than police protection.
“They won’t any longer walk alone, they will walk in crowds. People take care of their own safety. Law enforcement comes into action after a crime is committed, not before,” migrant labor rights activist Karomat Sharipov said.
RT News
During the trial the prosecutors will state the indictment, while the accused will respond with their plea.
Possible sentences should the accused be found guilty range from years in jail to a life sentence.
Investigators claim the gang was part of the National-Socialist Society and wants to turn Russia into a Nazi state.
The society was subsequently banned for being extremist.
More information
Slowly getting better
Veronica Koroleva is a self-professed, deeply religious woman who is full of hate for those who are different. She despises immigrants and accuses them of occupying, disrespecting and contaminating her nation.
Russians she insists are fighting a race war motivated by love.
“Love for our homeland and our nation, love for our god. Pure families where people don't just date and then break up; but, rather, they get married in church; they don't practice abortions; they don't support inter-ethnic marriages,” Koroleva said.
“I believe everyone should live in their own homeland where they belong,” she reacted when seeing RT’s Staci Bivens.
Armed with this belief and inspired by racist bloggings, her husband Nikolay Korolev and two fellow students bombed Moscow’s Cherkizovsky market in 2006. They targeted it because of the number of traders that come from Central Asia and China. The blast killed 14.
Veronica’s husband is serving a life sentence for actions neither of them regrets and for a cause they both support.
Attacks against non-Slavic looking people are often brutal and, in cases like in Cherkizovsky market, they are deadly.
The deeds of angry mobs pummeling outnumbered victims are recorded by racists and then posted on nationalist websites.
Activists call the situation out of control, but Galina Kozhevnikova from SOVA Center for Information Analysis – a local, non-profit crime watchdog – does acknowledge it is slowly getting better.
“They started seizing the most odious groups that had been involved in systematic violence and terrorism. During the last two years, the largest formations in Moscow were dispelled, and the key activists and murderers were detained,” Kozhevnikova said.
She says 19 people have been killed due to hate crimes in 2010, which is down from 50 for the same time period last year.
However, that math does little to satisfy migrants, who feel self reliance is better than police protection.
“They won’t any longer walk alone, they will walk in crowds. People take care of their own safety. Law enforcement comes into action after a crime is committed, not before,” migrant labor rights activist Karomat Sharipov said.
RT News
Hate crime website tackles five-per cent reporting statistic
Local support scheme Open Out – a third party reporting scheme that offers support, advice and information to the victims and witnesses of hate crime – launched openoutcambs.org in 2001 following the death of Stephen Lawrence, allowing members of the public to report incidents quickly and confidentially in order to access support.
But now they are reminding the public that it can also be used for gay hate crime.
“It is vital that anyone who hasbeen affected by this type of crime can get the help they need. We hope that this new website will make it easier for people to talk about what’s happened and access our service,” says Molly Blackburn, Open Out Co-ordinator.
If you or someone you know may have been affected by Hate Crime visit Open Out’s website: openoutcambs.orgor call: 01223 823553.
Pink News
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)